Torre announces roster

Joe just gave the roster to a few people publicly, so it’ll still be a while before it’s online. Here’s the 25-man group (DeWitt and Furcal will start up the middle in Game 1). Of course, this is all subject to change, if they decide to, as rosters aren’t due until tomorrow morning. But as of right now, we’re looking at:

Sara, I will annoy the heck out of them. I have a lot of friends that are Cub fans unfortunately. A lot of women have been giving me a hard time the last few days because Im not rooting for there Cubbies. I’m like cry me a river! Actually that’s what Cub fans do best, CRY!

great Roster. It just makes me more excited!!! The Cubs are in for a whippin!!!!
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Thank you Josh for the info :) It makes us happy!
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Eric- lol. you are too much. Keep up the good work!
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Rose- It sounds wonderful! I love holiday time at Disneyland and i look forward to next weekend. Have you ever been to club 33?? I don’t want to brag too much, but I am going for dinner when I go. I can’t wait!!

here are tony jackson’s notes to explain some of the roster decisions:

Scott Proctor lost out to Ramon Troncoso because Joe Torre needed a guy who would warm up, not come in, warm up again and then come in if necessary. Proctor, because of health issues he has had this year, isn’t able to do that right now. … Furcal is the starter at SS for now, unless he has more problems with his back or leg, and Berroa is the backup. But DeWitt will continue to start at 2B with Kent on the bench. … Juan Pierre is the only LH bat off the bench with Sweeney not making the roster, but Joe reiterated that Nomar and Kent are good enough hitters against right-handers that it shouldn’t matter. … All of this is subject to change for the second round if the Dodgers get there.

Rose, yea, it’s the members only club above pirates. It’s on of my favorite places to go. I’ve been fortunate for the past 3 years to know people with memberships. I hope one day, when I’m rich, to have my own membership. There is a 5 year waiting list to become a member- really crazy.
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Pobrecito DY. He’s been great for us this year. I guess Joes had to decide between him and Ozuna- I guess Pierre is outfield support and ozuna is infield support. DY is only outfield and we wouldn’t need 5 outfielders. Did I just say that?!?1 hahaha.
so sad, so ture.

AMY – how did you get in…I know I believe the 33 was for the 33 members back in Walt Disney’s time when he was still alive. I know it is a private suite. My bosses wife is a writer and she worked for L.A. Time in the 80’s a knows a lot of the behind the scenes of Disneyland and celebrities lifes.

Rose_ I have been blessed. At my previous job I had a boss with a membership that I (and the company) could use as much as we wanted. At my current job, I am lucky enough, again, to have a co-worker with a membership that I am welcome too.
It’s exclusive with the best food ever!!! and the best part is that Walt himself used to eat and entertain there. I love the history behind it :) haha-it’s ok, we will make 100 posts very soon!
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Eric- great idea about the turtle. Super long lifespan indeed :)
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Sara- thanks for sharing the roster explanations. It makes sense.
I’m sure it wasn’t an easy decision!

Anyone think Saito is ready to step back in as a closer? I’m thinking not exclusively. He did have a 1-2-3 save in SF, but I still think his arm strength, and velocity are not quite what they were before the injury.

FROM THE LA TIMES:
Dodgers’ Ned Colletti saved the season; will he be back for another?

“Dodgers General Manager Ned Colletti made midseason trades that pushed the Dodgers to the top of the NL West.
General Manager Colletti drew criticism for high-priced free agents who flopped, but his midseason acquisitions powered the Dodgers to a division title. ” – -By Dylan Hernandez, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer September 30, 2008

If only for few minutes, Ned Colletti looked relaxed. The Dodgers’ general manager had learned that his team would face the Chicago Cubs in the National League division series.

The visiting clubhouse at AT&T Park in San Francisco was clearing out on Sunday, as players rushed out of the showers, dressed quickly and dashed through the back door to the team bus. Colletti wasn’t in a hurry.

He stood in the middle of the clubhouse, saying something to the effect that his baseball life had come full circle, because his team would be facing the storied franchise that he cheered on as a youth and started working for in 1982 in the public relations department.

He told stories of the days he spent in the bleachers at Wrigley Field. He recounted how his father and two uncles camped outside the ballpark for tickets to the 1945 World Series, leaving home their 10-year-old brother, Frank Jr., with the promise: “The next time the Cubs are in the World Series, we’ll take you.”

The Cubs, of course, never made it back. Colletti exploded laughing. Colletti hadn’t laughed much like that lately, at least not with a semicircle of reporters in front of him.

The quick-tempered general manager appeared tense in the weeks leading up to the Dodgers’ coronation as NL West champions, his superstitious nature manifesting itself in growls when told his team looked like it was positioned to reach the postseason. Sunday, Colletti admitted that he couldn’t relax when his team was playing and that people who sat with him in the general manager’s suite during games often looked at him as if he’s deranged.

“I take it real serious,” he said. “I grind out every pitch with the guys.”

What he won’t admit is that he has anxiety about his future with the Dodgers.

Colletti was widely presumed to be on shaky ground midway through the season, as newly signed $36.2-million center fielder Andruw Jones lumped himself in with Jason Schmidt and Juan Pierre on the growing list of the GM’s questionable high-priced free-agent acquisitions, and his team — with a $120-million payroll — trailed Arizona in the standings.

However, by the time the Dodgers clinched the division title, owner Frank McCourt was crediting him for making the trades that salvaged the season. Manager Joe Torre agreed, saying it was the acquisitions of Manny Ramirez and Casey Blake in July that put the Dodgers on the path to the playoffs.

The Dodgers persuaded Ramirez’s and Blake’s former employers to pay the remainder of the money owed to them. Greg Maddux, acquired in an August waiver deal, is being paid only $500,000 of his $10-million salary by the Dodgers.

But McCourt hasn’t said whether Colletti will be back next season, the final year of his four-year contract.

McCourt declined to comment in June on Colletti’s future, saying it was unfair to speak on the subject with so much time remaining in the season. He declined to comment again last week, saying that to do so at this time of the year would be “totally disrespectful.”

“The people who need to know how I feel know how I feel,” McCourt said.

McCourt wouldn’t say whether Colletti was one of them. Colletti wouldn’t either. So the speculation persists, much to Colletti’s annoyance.

On the day Colletti became the first general manager in the Dodgers’ 51 years in Los Angeles to lead his club to two playoff appearances in his first three seasons, he became testy when the subject of his future came up in a roundabout way.

In the wake of the hailstorm of criticism he received for his high-priced free-agent signings that didn’t work out, Colletti was asked whether he felt vindicated when the midseason trades he made pushed the Dodgers to the top of the NL West.

“I have great confidence in what I do,” he said. “I know what my relationship with the McCourts is. I don’t need to be vindicated.”

Colletti could point to how he plugged several holes this season that were created by injuries to the likes of Rafael Furcal, Brad Penny, Nomar Garciaparra, Jeff Kent and Takashi Saito.

Though Ramirez and Blake might have thrust the Dodgers into the postseason, moves involving lesser-known players such as Angel Berroa, Pablo Ozuna and Blake DeWitt helped keep them in the race.

On the advice of bench coach Bob Schaefer, Colletti acquired Berroa, a former AL rookie of the year who spent the previous year and a half with the Kansas City Royals’ triple-A affiliate. A player who cost the Dodgers almost nothing — the Royals paid what remained of the $5.25 million owed Berroa and received only Class-A infielder Juan Rivera in return — was their starting shortstop over the last two months of the season.

Ozuna, who was released by the Chicago White Sox, became a late-inning replacement at second base for 40-year-old Jeff Kent.

When Kent had knee surgery with less than a month remaining in the season, he was replaced at second base by DeWitt, the rookie who was the Dodgers’ opening-day third baseman. When the Dodgers optioned DeWitt to triple-A Las Vegas in July, they had him work out at second base in case something like this happened.

Colletti not only managed to make his moves without costing the Dodgers money, but he also did it without mortgaging their future. The only notable prospect he parted with was third baseman Andy LaRoche, who went to Pittsburgh in the three-way trade that brought Ramirez from Boston.

For Blake, Colletti gave up triple-A reliever Jonathan Meloan and Class-A catcher Carlos Santana. For Maddux, he traded two yet-to-be-named prospects who aren’t on the 40-man roster.

Third base coach Larry Bowa said there were times this season when Torre asked Colletti if he could receive any reinforcements from the minors, only to be told that they couldn’t burn the option years of certain players.

“As a manager or a coach, you might want something, but you have to think about the future,” Bowa said. “Ned did a good job of that.”

WOW OBI…makes you realized how it took a little bit of Everyone to get the dodgers were they are at…From Manny, Blake, DeWitt, Ethier, Nomar and all the others guys…FINALY THE DODGERS ARE WORKING GOOD AS A ‘TEAM’.

LOL! You have to love the way the writers in LA just work around the inconvenient little fact that we’re hamstrung for the next couple of years by those obscene contracts for Jones, Schmidt and Pierre. I hope they write about why McCourt didn’t have enough money to resign Manny or get Sabathia if it comes to that.

Just watching the Raiders press conference. Al Davis looks awfull! He looks like he’s knocking on deaths door! He’s just trying to save face, and diss Kiffin like a buffoon kicking him while he’s down. No one in their right mind will want to step in as head coach working for a demented senile imbecile like him now.
Alas! Another sad season for Raider Nation!

JJ ~ I feel your pain on the state of the Raider Nation. I actually like them too…………love their colors………that’s how I pick my pro football team. Davis has been out of control for quite some time but the fans always support that team no matter how bad it is. Oh, to have the good old days when “The Snake ” played there!

Amy, Club 33?!!! You call me a pop superstar, but you are a POP LEGEND! I’M NOT WORTHY! I’M NOT WORTHY! heheheheh.

JJ, the ol’ Cryptkeeper is driving me nuts! Why don’t we just stick a Napoleon hat on him and get it overwith? I’m guessing our next head coach will find these three lines very helpful:
Yes, sir!
No, sir!
Why, what would a lowly guy like me know about the affairs of the Raiders, sir? All that thinking just gives me a headache!

Thank you NSB :)- I’m only blessed to know people in cool places. I sooo wish I had my own membership, one day when I have money!! But Club 33 is one of my favorite places.
I look forward to my visit!
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pop legend. I like it !

northstate~Cryptkeeper! LMFAO!!! That’s a VERY fitting nick name for him! The tyrant that he is! Kiffin’s hands were tied, and he was doomed from the start not being able to make changes to the coaching staff. Bottom line is, the Raiders need to suck it up, get some protection from the O-line, and tighten up the defense in the 4th quarter. This BS of them playing solid all around for 3 quarters, then imploding in the 4th is so heartbreaking & misleading for loyal Raider fans.

LOL! Ever since Marcus Allen was robbed of, what, 2 years of playing time, I’ve been searching for the perfect description for Al Davis. I can stop looking. “A demented senile imbecile” works perfectly! Thanks, jj!

Watching, and listening to his ramblings at the press conference, anyone in a sober state could see the lights were on, but no one was home. A once proud winning organization just a few years ago is in a tailspin. So sad.

eric~Thanks! When Allen was put on the shelf, and used exclusively as a 3rd down back, it’s been pretty much all down hill since. Bo was a phenominal athlete, but the way it was handled with Marcus was just wrong.

v14ecc: Well everything that goes up must come down it is all part of the circle of life…like whoever thought that the United States will have the finance problems were are having now…don’t worry Raider will come back up someday…

Both Ned and Joe indicated that they are still working through some things with the roster, and Joe specifically mentioned pitching. It’s probably that last spot that initially went to Troncoso. My guess is they might be reconsidering that and thinking of giving it to Proctor or McDonald.

Sorry folks! I don’t want it to seem like I’m going on a rant here.
Deep breath….OK, I’m done venting now…Have to think happier thoughts now, like winning at Wrigley, then coming home to finsh them off.
Yeah! That’s better! A few more sips of Bushmills, and I’ll be just fine. lol

I meant to address that in the initial post. It has more to do with covering themselves with depth at every position. Ozuna can play the outfield and is a natural infielder. D.Y. can play the infield, but is a natural outfielder who can only play second base. Ozuna covers them at more positions. He can play on both sides of the bag and all over the outfield. He actually has played a game or two at ALL SEVEN POSITIONS in his career. So it’s more about versatility than anything.

Since we’re playing the Cubs, some event will have to happen during this series that Cub fans will have to use as their excuse for losing. Any ideas, ITD? Let’s make it 100 years and counting!!!! GO BLUE!!!!

I mentioned this on the previous thread.
Does anyone think Saito is ready to step back into the closing role? I’m thinking not exclusively, and depends on the situation. Brox makes me as nervous as a hooker in church lately, and Saito did have a 1-2-3 outing in SF.
Food for thought.

I’ve just re-read the Dylan Hernandez puff piece on Coletti. His Joe Torre puff piece came out last Tuesday, so I can only assume the Hernandez Bakery will pull a Frank McCourt puff piece out of the oven NEXT Tuesday. ANYWAY…………

Let’s have a look at this entry:
“Colletti could point to how he plugged several holes this season that were created by injuries to the likes of Rafael Furcal, Brad Penny, Nomar Garciaparra, Jeff Kent and Takashi Saito.”

Plugged holes? Really. One at a time, please.

Furcal? Rafael went down May 5 if memory serves. Who pugged that hole? Berroa, I guess. Picked him up a month later. He actually started contributing something 3 months after that. Kudos.

Penny? Help me out here. Is Maddux the plug for this hole? Penny was done in the middle of June. Maddux arrived 2 months later and has been a Jeckle/Hyde – either been decent or throwing batting practice. That’s ok, I guess. Better than Penny.

Nomar? Who was the plug for Nomar? Nomar wasn’t considered a starter this season until LaRoche went down, and 10 minutes later he was done for months. DeWitt? Give me a break, I think not. I like Casey Blake, but I don’t think Blake was a replacement for Nomar. Blake was a replacement for DeWitt and LaRoche. At the time we got him, I remember thinking that “why did we get another 3B? We need a shortstop!” Oops, forgot. We got Berroa for that.

Kent? Did Coletti reach down in the minors and uncover DeWitt?

Saito? Who did he get to replace Sammy? No one.

His biggest plug obviously was Ramirez but there wasn’t a hole to plug in the OF, we already had 4. OK, 2 (plus 1/4 plus 1/8 = 2 3/8s). Manny didn’t plug a hole, except for a bat with a lot of thunder in it. I’ll give him this one, but if we can’t keep him, it’ll be his fault because of the Albatross Triplets (Pierre, Jones and Schmidt). And where will that leave us for next season? I like DY, but he’s no Manny. Without Ramirez in ’09, we get Juanpy back as a starter.

Hole-filler, HAH! He just went out and got what he could get for no money and put them in the mix. Coletti is like a student who messes around the whole year and is scrambling like mad, hoping to high heaven that he can somehow pull out a “C”.

i know you guys would think it’s fine.. i was just asking because it’s funny how much time we used to spend discussing lineups to complain.. and now, we don’t spend anytime on it because there’s nothing to complain about.. haha

I am so excited for the game tomorrow, just bummed I’ll still be at work during part of it. I really thought Andre would go back to the 2 hole in the playoffs and so did Kevin Kennedy and Steve Lyons. Many of us already believed what Andre was capable of, but it’s kind of a 360 for Torre to go from jerking him in and out of the lineup to batting him cleanup in the opening game of the playoffs. That’s an awesome accomplishment for him. Manny helped him a lot, but he deserves a lot of credit on his own too. All the Dodgers have worked really hard to get where they are now. Go Dodgers!

The Rays are a great story going from worst last year,to first this year. Doing it with mostly homegrown talent, and limited payroll. They sure are tough to beat at home! They will be well rested to play whoever wins tonight. It should be interesting to say the least.

Interesting with Ethier in the 4th spot…this is a kid that had to literally earn his position 3 times this year and now he is the clean up hitter. Wow, Mr Ethier you have arrived and thank you for your great attitude and work ethic…Alot of young players would have pouted, but you hung in there and EARNED the position….3 Times…..

Stinks about DY, but Ozuna versatility is too important with Furcal and Kent both suspect due to injury…he may be needed down the road at OF, SS, 2b…..

Lets go Blue!!! Lowe usually pitches well in Wrigley from what I can remember…bring your A game D lowe…

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